Seal for floating tank covers



SEAL FOR FLOATING TANK COVERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 24, 1946 INVENTOR.

Fred L. Plummer INVENTOR: Fred L. Plummer Aug. 9, 1949. F. 1.. PLUMMER 2,473,422

SEAL FOR FLOATING TANK COVERS Filed Oct. 24, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet z Patented Aug. 9, 1949 SEAL FOR FLOATING TANK COVERS Fred L. Plummer, Warren, Pa, assignor to Hammond Iron Works, Warren, fa a corporation of Pennsylvania Application October '24, 1946,,Se1f1alNo. 705,468

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to storage tanks, for example oil storage tanks, requiring a floating pontoon-supported roof or top or cover structure capable of moving piston-like up or down within the tank in accordance with changes of volume of the tank content, and having sealing contact with the tank. More specifically this relates to the annular sealing structure comprising yieldably mounted sectors or contact shoes. Such shoes move body up and down with the cover while being urged radially into sliding contact with the tank wall, and have flexible interconnections with one another as in the form of vertical strips of pliable material such as rubber sheeting.

It is among the objects of this invention to provide simple, inexpensive and effective uni tary or combined or dual purpose means for thus supporting as well as urging a contact shoe, which can be easily mounted or dismounted.

I attain these objects by using a locking device for removably fastening or anchoring upon the cover the foot-end portion of a substantially upright leaf spring or supporting member the upper end portion of which is sprung outwardly and to which a shoe is connected.

Features reside in the specific configuration of the shoe-supporting spring member, as well as in the construction of the locking device for fastening the foot-end portion of the spring member upon the cover.

According to one feature, the ioot-end portion of the spring member has a catch portion adapted to engage interiorly in a corresponding recess in the pocket. A latch-member or filler member or wedge inserted into the pocket secures the anchoring engagement of the catch.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which with the foregoing will be set forth in the following description. In the following description and in the claims, parts will be identified by specific names for convenience, but they are intended to be as generic in their application to similar parts as the art will permit. In the accompanying drawings there has been illustrated the best embodiment of the invention known to me, but such embodiment is to be regarded as typical only of many possible embodiments, and the invention is not to be limited thereto.

The novel features considered characteristic of my invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its organization and its method of operation, together with additional oblec'ts and advantages thereof, will best be understood from the following description of a specific embodiment when read in connection with the ac oompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a part-sectional semi-diagrammatic view of the tank, having part of the tank wall as well as part of the fioatlngcover broken away;

Fig. 2 is a cross section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective detailed view of a sealing shoe with parts broken away to lureshorten the width thereof in the drawing;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged section (perspectively shown) taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2 and also partially showing the flexible connection between adjoining contact shoes;

Fig. -5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5, in Figs. 1 and 2 of the flexible connection of two adjoining contact shoes;

Fig. '6 is a detail section taken .on the line 6-6 in Fig. 5';

Fig. *7 is a cross section taken on the line I -l in Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a detailed front view of the anchoring means for the contact shoe, taken on the line 8-8 in Fig. 4;

Fig. 9 is a cross section taken on the line 9--9 in Fig.

Figs. 10 and 11 are operational views illustrating the steps of manipulating the anchoring means when installing the contact shoe shown in Fig. 4.

A round storage tank ill of a diameter D in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises a bottom H, an upstanding wall l2, and a floating pontoon-supported cover I 3 havingmarginal resiliently yieldable contact means whereby the cover seals itself against the surrounding tank wall when moving up and down in the tank with the varying level L of the liquid body in the tank.

The construction of the cover 13 comprises a circular body portion or pontoon body M of a diameter D1 consisting of a bottom IS, a top I6, and a cylindrical wall ll welded to the top It and the bottom 15 respectively. The diamsheeting. The composite annular structure thus created by the shoes l9 and their vertical connecting strips is in turn connected at its inner upper edges 2| with the upper edge portions of a cylindrical sealing member 22 .of. pliablerubber or rubberized material the lower edge portion 23 of which is connected to the upper outer peripheral edge of the pontoon body 4. A secondary pliable sealing strip 24 of rubber or rubberized material is fastened on top of the contact shoes l9 and engages the tank wall for the protection and further sealing-off of the contact faces of the shoes l'9.

The vertical connecting strips 28 serving as pliable compensating elements between respective shoes l9 form vertical inward bulges 25 appearing in the cross-sections thereof in Figs. 5 and '7 as well as in the lateral view of Fig. 6. From Fig. 6 it also appears that a horizontal top end portion 26 of the bulge abuts and registers with a corresponding horizontal inward bulge 22 of the cylindrical pliable member or boot 22. Achannel 21 (see Fig. 7) formed by the bulge is in turn sealed by means of a sponge rubber plug 28 at the top end thereof (see Figs. 4 and 5). The line of abutment between the vertical connecting strips 2!] and the cylindrical pliable member or boot 22 is indicated at 29.

A contact shoe I9, an enlarged detail perspective View of which is shown in Fig. 3, comprises a plate 30 and one or more supporting members or stems 3| each being pivotally connected to the plate. Three such stems 3| (see Fig, 2) are herein shown. The plate 33 has a vertical body portion 3|] slightly curved in a manner to conform to the curvature of the tank wall as defined by the diameter D thereof. The plate curves slightly inwardly away from the wall to form the lower edge portion 32. A top end portion 33 which in turn comprises an inwardly inclined portion 33 shaped like a sector of a truncated cone, and a horizontal flange portion 33 The stem 3| is removably mounted and anchored upon the pontoon body l4. A pocket 35 open at the top as well as at the bottom receives the foot portion of the stem as well as a filler member 36. The stem 3| is of flat somewhat resilient or springy stock to serve a dual purpose, namely as a'supporting member for the plate 36 and also as a flat or leaf spring for urging the plate into con tact with the tank wall. The stem 3| comprises a' vertical lower end or foot portion 3| being formed at its extreme lower end with an outwardly bent terminal or catch portion 3| and an outwardly inclined upper endor head portion 3| provided with a pair of ears 3? straddling a vertical rib 38 welded to the inner face of the plate 38. A pivot 39 connects the ears 3'! with the rib 38.

The pocket 35 consists of a piece of fiat stock having an intermediate body portion 35 and a pair of oiT-set end portions 35* and 35 Welded to the pontoon body l4. The bottom of the pocket is formed by an annular ledge portion 40 contion 33 of the plates 30.

stituting part of the bottom plate l5 of the ponteen body l4 thus creating a lateral opening 4| at the bottom of the pocket, in which lodges the catch portion 3| of the stem 3|.

The filler member 36 comprises a Vertical fiat body portion 36 having a pair of symmetrically disposed outwardly bent ears 36 by means of which it can be manipulated.

The longitudinal edges of the connecting strip 20 are connected with the adjoining edge portions of respective shoes l9 by means of metal strips 43 pressing the overlapping edge portions of a strip 20 and a plate 30 together due to wedges 44 driven between the metal strip 43 and retaining arms 45 unitary with the plate 33 and welded thereto.

The secondary sealing strip 24 runs along the inner face of the tank wall and has its end cut on a bias and spliced together as at 46, this sealing strip being held in place by means of thin fiat metal strip material fastened as by bolts 5| screwed into the horizontal top end or flange por- Mutually adjoining overlapping ends of such strip material are shown at 52.

An annular pliable element or boot 22 connects the floating body 4 marginally with the shoes Hi. This boot 22 consists of a substantially vertical cylindrical body portion 22 and a horizontal outwardly extending flange portion 22 which has radial bulges or grooves 22 registering and abutting as at 29 with the top ends of the bulges or channels 25 of the vertical connecting strips 20,

The bottom edge portion of the boot 22 is fastened to the top margin of the pontoon body l4, namely to the inner face of an upward extension or crown portion M of the cylindrical vertical wall portion thereof. The fastening elements comprise metal strip material or a metal contact strip 53 pressing the respective overlapping edge portions against one another due to wedges 54 driven between the metal strip material 53 and wedge retaining posts or lugs 55 unitary with the top plate [6 of the pontoon body l4 and welded thereto. The horizontal flange portion 22 of boot 22 is fastened to the under side of the horizontal top end portion of the shoes l9 by means of metal strip material 56 and bolts 51.

The manipulation in mounting the contact shoes l9 upon the pontoon body I4 is illustrated in Figs. 8 to 11. In Fig. 10 the foot end portion 3| of the stem 3| is about to be lowered into the pocket 35 so as to lodge therein as shown in Fig. 11 with the catch portion 3|' lodging in the lateral bottom opening 4| of the pocket. At this stage in Fig. 11 the lockingor filler member 36 is about to be dropped and inserted into the space between the stem 3| and the vertical wall I? of the pontoon body 4. When so inserted the filler member 36 will secure the anchoring of the stem upon the pontoon body by securing the catch portion 3| in its lodging place in opening 4|.

' I claim:

In a tank adapted for holding a body of liquid, provided with a floating roof structure movable up and down within the tank, annular sealing means disposed within an annular space between the roof structure and the tank wall comprising vertical contact shoes engaging the tank wall for up and down sliding movement thereon, each shoe having a substantially upright outwardly sprung shoe-supporting leaf spring member having its upper end connected to the shoe, and

5 mounting means for fastening the foot-end por- REFERENCES CITED tion of the spring member upon the cover structure comprising a vertical pocket for receiving 2 2; fig g a gg are of recold m the said foot-end portion and having a lateral interp e nal recess, a laterally extending catch upon said 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS foot-end portion adapted to engage in said recess Number Name Date to provide anchoring engagement of said foot- 1229 677 Tombemn June 12 1917 end portion in said pocket, and a removable filler 1426997 Leland et Aug 1922 member inserted in said pocket to secure the 1673983 Kuhl Jun; 1928 engagement of said catch in said recess. 10 1698:158 Glass Jan 1929 FRED PLUMMER' 1,900,904 Berger Mar, 14, 1933 

